Erik Hamren, the Sweden coach, has expressed hope that England's decision to
base themselves in Poland, despite playing all their group matches in the
Ukraine, will give his team a crucial advantage in tonight's Euro 2012 match.

Fighting fit: England confident travel fatigue will not become an issuePhoto: AFP

While England are staying in the centre of Krakow and flying in and out of the Ukraine for their matches, Sweden have been based in Kiev where tonight's match will take place.

As many as 20,000 Sweden fans are also based in the Ukraine capital, with around 6,000 attending an open training session in Kiev on Thursday.

With temperatures reaching 30C and beyond in Ukraine, there is the concern that England's travelling schedule could contribute to any problems with Euro 2012 fatigue.

Sweden also played their opening group game in Kiev and Hamren believes that the avoidance of any additional travel could work to their advantage tonight. "I hope so, yes," he said. "That's why we stayed here."

England's arrangements were agreed long before Roy Hodgson's appointment, with Hamren yesterday also outlining the impact that the new England manager had on Swedish football during his time working in Scandinavia at club level.

"He came to Sweden unknown but gained a big name in Sweden with the way he made results and brought new influences into Swedish football," said Hamren. "He's a big name in Sweden and we'll never forget what he's done for Swedish football. I'm looking forward to meeting him. I do really like him. You've seen so far he's a good coach, and we know that in Sweden."

Hamren is also prepared for the expectation that Andy Carroll will partner Danny Welbeck in attack tonight, with England likely to employ a more direct approach as they try to exploit weaknesses in the Sweden defence.

"Carroll is a good player in the box," said Hamren. "If they are going to have that kind of play, they'll want him on the pitch."

With Sweden having been beaten 2-1 by the Ukraine in their opening group match, Hamren knows that his team cannot afford another defeat and has been boosted by the news that Zlatan Ibrahimovic, their captain and talisman, has been passed fit following a thigh injury.

"It's been a tough time since the loss against Ukraine," said Hamren.

"Our performance was not what we were wishing for. These feelings disappeared quite fast because the players had their families with them and got some time to relax, and we had a good training session with our supporters. It was really special. The last few days have given us a lot of energy, and now we have our focus on the game.

"We were cowardly as a team [against Ukraine]. If we are going to win against England, we'll need to perform better tactically and physically."

Hamren, though, is drawing on the qualifying performance of his team, who secured their place in the Euro 2012 finals after wins in their last two matches against Holland and Finland.

"I think it's a similar situation," he said. "That's a good thing to bring into those two games left in the group. We need to make some results, and maybe win both to go further. To have that experience is good."